Dining Great Lakes Bay: La Placita finds new life in Birch Run

BIRCH RUN, MI — When Paula Smith was a girl growing up in Saginaw, her family made it a holiday tradition to stop by La Placita for dinner before heading to Frankenmuth to see the Christmas lights.

A fixture since 1976 on Saginaw’s southwest side, La Placita “was always a favorite,” said Smith, whose husband, Jeremy, also grew up on its signature Ruiz tacos and homemade salsa. Even after moving to Frankenmuth, the couple made it a point to stop by.

So when they learned from owner Nancy Ruiz that she was closing, “we told her, ‘No, you’re not,’” Smith said. “We were serious: La Placita wasn’t going to go away.”

A July fire triggered the closing of the Saginaw restaurant, but the Smiths were thinking of something closer to home. Jeremy Smith, who owns Frankenmuth Technology Solutions, joined with Ruiz to buy the diner on Gera in Birch Run made famous after Drew Barrymore filmed scenes for the movie “Whip It” there.

“It took a month to convince the sellers that we had something that was going to stick around,” Paula Smith said. “Then I spent another month cleaning the place up before we opened Aug. 31.”

It sparkles, still sporting the chrome décor of a previous owner. Smith and Ruiz were giddy, joking around like teenage sisters, as Paulie Ruiz cooked up enchiladas and nachos and tacos for the already-gathering lunch crowd early one Friday.

“The only thing we’ve changed on the menu is jalapeno poppers; we serve them now,” Smith said, adding that it’s the only food that comes in already prepared.

The enchilada sauce, a customer favorite, is Nancy Ruiz’s own recipe, she said. The salsa is homemade, and so are the puffy tacos that carry the family name.

Ruiz’s story begins when her father, working at Saginaw Grey Iron, would sell boxes of her mother’s tacos and tostadas to his co-workers. And when Ruiz and her siblings worked in the fields, she sent them off with more of her home-cooking.

“My Mom and Dad opened the restaurant in 1976, and when my mom died six months later, she took her recipes to the grave,” she said. “I was laid off from my job with the police force, and instead of going back, I decided to help my dad.”

Working from scratch, they came up with their own dishes, and early customers remember Paul Ruiz’s hearty welcome. Those were the days, too, Nancy Ruiz said, when the waitstaff wore traditional Mexican skirts and blouses, until she realized that the elasticized waists hid the pounds gathering underneath.

“One day, I couldn’t fit in my jeans anymore,” she said, Smith laughing at the story. “We had 31 of those dresses, but that was the end.”

Smith had no restaurant experience when she signed on, “but I worked for years at the Old Town Soup Kitchen,” she said. “They run that place so well, with everything immaculate and up to code, that I learned everything I needed to know to pass the licensing exam for La Placita.”

“God works in mysterious ways,” Ruiz said. “I literally cried when we left the old restaurant after 35 years there.”

Smith dove into the job with an enthusiasm that rejuvenated the restaurant, reminding Ruiz of herself when she first opened the doors in Saginaw.

“You click; you do good,” she told Smith, the two dissolving in giggles again.

What came as a surprise to both are the number of customers who followed them to the new locale, equal distance from Birch Run’s outlet malls and Bronner’s in Frankenmuth.

“It’s all been word of mouth,” Smith said. “A lot of people think we’re new, and then we have people Nancy’s known for years who live out here.”

“I see the regulars coming in, and they keep coming back,” Ruiz said.

“Some every day,” Smith added.

Ruiz knows they have a good product, and that, in time, she will leave the restaurant in the hands of someone who cares.

“We’re like family,” she said, Smith adding, “We have to be, spending 24 hours a day together.”

Ruiz smiled.

“They’re learning that you eat and sleep La Placita,” she said. “God works in mysterious ways.”

La Placita Mexican Diner

HOW TO FIND IT: 11740 Gera, Birch Run

PRICES: Appetizers range from $4.99 to $8.99. Ruiz taco dinners run from $7.99 to $8.99. Soups and salads run from $2.99 to $7.99. Combination plates cost $6.99 to $9.99 and the Magnificent Seven run from $7.99 to $8.99. Dinners run from $5.99 to $8.99. A la carte items, such as tacos, range from $2.19 to $6.69. Desserts are also available.